Getting Started with Photofiltre. - Uguel707 2006
This thread on Photofiltre will consist of short and simple tutorials designed to initiate the newcomer to the program. I think that the best way to learn how to use a program is by starting to learn its main functions and acquire good understanding of the tools at our disposal by taking part actively.
Hopefully, with the help of simple and walktrough instructions we will be able to get the work done and help users become comfortable and productive with Photofiltre.
Photofiltre website & download http://www.photofiltre.com/
How to resize a picture with Photofiltre Tutorial 1
Picture resized from 600X400 pixels to 300x200 pixels
1. Start Photofiltre. Go to the menu click on File > Open, locate the picture you want to work on and click on Open.
Tip: you can also click on the little yellow folder icon to open a picture. Left side of the Menu bar
...you picture is now opened in Photofiltre.
You will see the dimensions of your picture at the bottom of your workplace. Mine is 600 x400 pixels...of course, yours can be different!
2. Resize your picture by going to the Menu > scroll down till you see "Image size" Here I have Width : 600 pixels
I would like to have my picture reduced to half the size. All I have to do is to scroll down the calculation options,
choose the percentage, and then write 50 for the width and 50 for the height in order to reduce the picture to 50%.
or
you can change the width 600 pixels to 300 pixels
and the height 400 pixels to 200 pixels which also equals to 50% of the picture. Keep in mind that if your are not satisfied with the change, you can always go back or undo the last action by clicking on the red undo arrow in the menu.
That is all! Tips:
If you find the picture a little blurry after resizing, you can augment
the contrast of the picture. In my case I augmented the contrast to 20%. For doing so, go to the Menu > Brightness Contrast and then raise the contast by moving
the cursor to the right, Usually 10% to 20 % might do the trick. Then I augmented the brightness to 10%.
Have a look at your picture to determine if your are satisfied with the size.... if it is still too big, you can reduce it more by doing the same steps and choosing the percentage that fits your picture best.
Remember, you can always go back as long as the image remains opened in the program. Use the red arrow to undo any unwanted change.
Save your picture with a different name if you want to keep the original as it is. Use the JPEG or PNG Format.
Voilà, you are done!
If you have any questions regarding this tutorial or need more explanations,
feel free to ask. I will move on with more tutorials later so please be patient before asking questions that are not related to this topic. If for whatever reason you feel the need to post an image or photograph in order to get help, try not to exceed 500 X 500 pixels otherwise the page will take too much time to download. Also, some users with low connexions might not be able to see the page because of that.
How to Use the Crop Tool with Photofiltre Here is the picture I had at the beginning.
...then I reduced it to this dimension after using the crop tool.
Using the Rectangle Selection to Crop a Picture
unnecessary. In Photofiltre, this is done using the rectangle tool. First open your image in Photofiltre.
Choose the selection rectangle from the Tools Palette.
Start in a corner of your photo(1) and while you are pressing your left mouse button, drag the rectangle covering the area you wish to keep and then go to the Menu bar > Image > Crop. The area outside the dotted rectangle will be deleted, leaving just the part you want.
Notice also that after releasing the mouse you can customize the emplacement of the cropping rectangle simply by hovering the cursor
over the dotted line of the rectangle or square...then you will see a cursor with arrowheads at both heads. (2)
Once you are done with your picture, save it with a different name if you want to keep the original as it is. Use the JPEG or PNG Format.
Tip
If for whatever reason, you decide not to crop the picture
anymore while working on your picture with the rectangle selection tool and that you want to get rid of it, go to the Menu bar > Selection > Hide Selection (or Ctrl+D).
How to create a transparent background (part 1) Tutorial 3
This tutorial will show you how to change or remove the background of a picture in order to apply it on a different background. This technique is easy for beginners, there is another way of doing it that I will show you later on.
1. Open up your image in Photofiltre
2. Duplicate your picture by going to the Menu bar > Image > Duplicate or you can do Ctrl+U. By duplicating your image, you will be able to compare the results with your original and make adjustments if necessary. Now we will remove the background.
3. Go to the Menu bar > Image > Transparent color I set the transparency to 20
I usually set the transparency between 15 and 30
When the window opens, you will notice that the program has already detected the main colour of your background. In my case, it was turquoise
so it detected turquoise... Photofiltre is now ready to get rid of the turquoise colour. Apply the change and click OK.
The background is now removed!
I said almost because some of the turquoise colour has been left around the subject.
If I want to get rid of it, I could hit the undo button (red arrow), and then apply a higher level of tolerance like 30 instead of 20. But if I do that, some similar tones of turquoise found in the shirt will be removed too !
Normally, what I will do to get rid of the turquoise is to enlarge the picture. use the eraser and then erase any remaining parts that were left over. Unfortunalety, the free version of Photofiltre doesn't have the eraser tool!
So the best thing I can do for this picture is to find a background on which I wanted to paste my picture in it. I will copy and paste my picture of the boy over my new black background and then with the brush tool, I will colour any of the unwanted spots I do not want to keep with black (or the same colour of the new background colour).
I decided to copy the picture of the boy on a black background... 4. ...So I opened a new picture with a black background.
5. I copy and paste the picture over the black picture. Menu bar> Edit > Copy (or Ctrl+C)
Now that boy picture is pasted over the black background, I will have to get rid of the turquoise left around him.
6. I will goto the Palette tools and choose the Paintbrush tool
and then I will select the size of the brush I feel comfortable to work with. 7. Also, I will set the foreground to black
The foreground is the first rectangle at the top of the material tools.
If you click on it, a window will open and display more colours to choose from. In my case, I chose black.
8. Before applying black around my model, I will maximize the
view of the picture by clicking on the little magnifier with the plus sign (zoom in) and I can also maximize the view of the picture by clicking on the square
on the edges of the picture.
Notice that when you want to return to the normal size of the picture, you just have to the Menu bar > View > Original size.
9. Now I can hide any of the remaining turquoise by painting over it with black. I carefully painted over with
a small Paintbrush and then I added a bit of turquoise in the shoulder area for a little part of that colour was removed when removing the background. here's the result....
Tip:
You can also copy and paste the transparent image on any background that you already have on your computer.
Notice that some image do not need any retouching when the background consists of one solid colour that is completely different from the subject. So start practicing with solid colour background images at first.
Like in the example below....the horse picture was changed to a transparent background and just a tiny amount of blue remained at the bottom but I was able to get rid of it after cropping the picture.
You can practice with this image in order to get used to the transparency.
How to create a transparent background (part2) tutorial 4
In the present tutorial, we will do almost the same thing we did in the preceding one except that we will manage to get rid of
ALL the colours in the background in order to be able to display the picture with or without any background at all.
Remember that in our last tutorial, we started with an image that already had a background colour and that colour (turquoise) was also found in our subject so when we got rid of the turquoise, the turquoise that was already on the shirt got erased a little bit. But that did not matter too much for the picture was to be pasted on a black background and most of the little flaws could be easily seen and corrected once the picture was pasted on a black image. But now we do not want ANY remaining colours because we want to be able to display the subject of the picture with no background at all. So, to do so, what we need is a solid colour that is not in the foreground. What we will do is find and apply a very different colour that is not in the subject at all. I chose pink Magenta.
Notice that some of the actions we will do here have no screenshots, nevertheless, they can be found in the preceding tutorial.
1. Open your picture in Photofiltre. 2. Duplicate your picture.
Go to the Menu > Image > Duplicate.
3. We will work on the duplicated picture only but keep the original open to compare or to make any adjustment.
4. Go to the Colour palette and set your foreground colour to Magenta pink : Red 255, Green 0. Blue 254
5. By using the paintbrush tool, set the square tip radius to 15 and start painting your background leaving a space of about 1/4 inch (about 0,8 centimeter) around the edge of your subject.
6. Simply complete by filling the remaining space
around your subject with a smaller brush or a size that allows to fill in without overlapping your subject. If you make a mistake, just hit the red arrow tool to undo the last action.
I recommend that you increase the view of your picture while working on it. See preceding tutorial screenshots for zooming & resizing. Once you are done, look at your picture carefully to make sure that you haven't forgetten any part ...See if you haven't left any space that is not painted properly or that has semi-transparent colours like in the screenshot below.
....If so, just take the brush tool again and paint over.
7. Then go to the Menu > Transparent color > and set the transparency between 30 and 60. Notice that you can go over 30 only if the colour of the background is completely different from any colour in the foreground
or the subject which was not the case in the preceding tutorial. Click Ok. Now have a look at your picture...see if you are satisfied with the results... If for any reason you forgot some spots, click the undo button to remove the transparency and then go back in your picture again to apply any correction that you need to make.
Hopefully, you will be able to achieve nice results.
Tip: Working pixel by pixel can be tedious and a strain on the eyes, try to take a break every 10 minutes from the computer.
More Examples
based on the explanations from tutorial 4 1. First there were 2 people in the photograph.
2. I decided to take the girl only...so I coloured the background with a colour that was not in the foreground.
...this is what I got
4. I decided to put the subject on a different background.
Tip:
To add a border outside your picture, you go to the Menu > Image > Outside frame > I chose a black frame of 2 pixels for my avatar. Larger pictures will require larger borders naturally! what would u need to do if the background was complex and not single color?
Like in this picture?
I will do the same thing as in tutorial 4. I will simply fill the background with a colour that is not found anywhere in the picture and then hit
the transparency button as in step 3 of tutorial 4 .
then I made it transparent by going to the Menu bar > Image > Transparent color and set it to 30.
And of course, once the picture is transparent, you can paste it over another background. He is not looking any happier but that's what you got
BUT trying to remove the background of a busy image like this one...
will be (for obvious reason) very problematic. It is not impossible but this is monk's work and this is not what I am at.
I think you will like Photofiltre for it has many good features in it although I deplore the fact that the freeware version has no eraser (definitely not a painting program) but still, there are a number of interesting things that you can do with it.
Changing Season from Summer to Fall tutorial 5
There is a way to make a picture of Fall by starting with a summer picture with Photofiltre. It's a Photoshop technique I learned
from a German website that works also with Paint Shop Pro and other graphic programs. Since Photofiltre doesn't have the same features
or colour adjustments as in Photoshop and PSP, I discovered another way of doing it and it went pretty well.
1. Open a picture of Summer in Photofiltre. I had this one...
2. Duplicate your picture.
Menu > Image > Duplicate (or Ctrl + U)
3. Go to the Menu > Adjust > Swap RGB channel Apply RGB = = > GRB, click Ok
4. Once again, go to the Menu > Adjust > Color balance im my case, I applied the below settings but yours can vary depending on your image.
Magenta to Green : 17% Yellow to Blue : 0% Click Ok
5. Now, we will enhance the colours by using the Auto Contrast button situated at the top left of the filter bar.
If you do not see the filter bar, go to the Menu > View > and click on Filter bar ...the filter bar will appear.
TIP:
If you desire more contrast in your picture, go to the Menu > Adjust and click on "More shadows".
@Uguel - is it possible to do the reverse effect, fall to summer? Yes, it is! But the results are usually better the other way around. I had this picture of an Autumn landscape...
that I wanted to change for a Summer landscape... please refer to tutorial 5 for screenshots
1. I went to the Menu > Adjust > Swap RGB channel Apply RGB = = > GRB, click Ok
2. then I returned again to the Menu > Adjust > Color balance im my case, I applied these settings below but yours can vary depending on your image.
Notice that I applied different settings than the ones in tutorial 5: Cyan to Red : 24 %
Magenta to Green : -15 Yellow to Blue : 8% Click Ok
Then I enhanced the colours by using the Auto Contrast button situated at the top left of the filter bar.
Changing the Hue of a Picture tutorial 6
Changing the hue of a picture is very simple to do with Photofiltre. I had this picture
... and decided to made a version in blue of it.
2. Go to the Menu > Adjust > Hue variation. I chose a blue hue.
Move the little cursor while watching the changes taking effect on your picture. Adjust it to your liking then click Ok. If you find the effect too pronounced, just go tothe Menu > Edit > Fade Hue variation and then adjust as needed.
3. Save your picture as a .JPG and giving it a different name to keep the original as it is.
Tip: If You want the Hue variation tool to appear as an icon in the Menu.
Just go to the Menu > View and click on "Filter bar". You will see the hue icon showing like this:
A red hue was applied in this picture and then I faded the effect to 50%
Create your own Custom Icons tutorial 7
Here's an easy way to create custom icons for your computer with Photofiltre. 1. Find an image that you like or wish to create an icon with.
Remember the neater the image is, the better the results will be. Almost any size can do provide you get a good quality image. I had this image
2. Open your image in Photofiltre.
3. Open your filter bar if you do not see it. Go to the Menu > View > Filter bar
this is how the filter bar looks...
We will emphasize the colours in the image so the icon will stand out more... 4. Go to the filter bar and click on ''Contrast +" one or two times.
This will raise the contrast of the image and makes it look sharper. Remember that you can click on the "Undo" arrow if you don't like the last change. The "Redo'' arrow will allow you to re-apply the change. 5. You can also apply a border of 2 pixels around your image.
Go to the Menu > Image > Outside frame.
I usually set the width to 2 pixels and applied a black border to my icons. Now we are ready to make an icon from our image.
6. Go to the Menu > Tools > Export as icon...
Once I am satisfied I save it in a folder containing
all the icons I created in C: \WINDOWS\ system32\ my icons. Link the icon to a program or a folder:
Now I will chose a program (it could also be a folder) on my computer and link the program to this icon....
I decided to change Irfan View default Icon....
I click on Properties > Change Icon >
Browse and I browse until I see my icon folder which is located in My computer, C: \WINDOWS\ system32\ my icons.
Once I see "my icons'' folder, I click on it to open and go Retrieve the red girl icon from the folder....
... so I simply select it then I click open, and confirm the changes Ok > Ok to the next windows showing.
Notice that my O.S, is Windows XP, it is possible that the folder location needs to be placed in a different location with another operating systems. this is my new Irfan View Icon, lol!
This is the way you can do it with programs and folders; for system icons it is a bit different. To Change a System Icon
the "Recycle Bin" you will have to right click on your desktop > Select and click Properties > Customize desktop > Desktop items > Change Icons
and then you follow the same path as in step 7 that is My computer, C: \WINDOWS\ system32\ my icons....
and you select and open the icon you want for your desktop and click OK. Tips
try not to get images that contain lots of small features in it, otherwise they will look blurry or messy once converted as icons. If you prefer transparent icons, you might go on the Internet
and look for. gifs or images that have transparent background unless you create them yourself in Photofiltre with the drawing tools.
Keep in mind that you can also change the plain yellow folder look in
Create Neon Letters tutorial 8
This is a tutorial I created today with Photofiltre. You will get good results if you follow the directions carefully! We will work with the text tool and the Gaussien filter. Do not forget to deselect your letters BEFORE applying a filter to them. Clicking on a tool from the Tools Palette, for instance this one...
...is the fastest way to get rid of the marching ants around the text. If you do not do that and apply a filter on selected letters, you will see a demarcation around your letters after applying a filter. The selection tool
or the arrow at the top right of the tools Palette won't work, all the others will work fine. 1. Open up a new image in Photofiltre.
I had 400x280 and my background was set to black.
2. Click on the "T" just under the Menu to open the text dialog box. 3. Choose a font that you like preferably with neat edges.
4. Set the size. I have 80 but yours can be different if you have a different font.
Choose a brilliant colour. I had Cobalt blue but it can be Emerald green, Magenta pink or any brilliant shade.
Write your text and click Ok.
5. Now you should see your text in your image. There are marching ants around. Click on any tool in the tool Palette to get rid of it. (save the selection tool!) We will blur these letters so that they will become the backgound glow.
6. Go to the Menu > Filter > Visual effect > Gaussien blur > Move the cursor to 25 pixels approx.
7. Re-apply the same text a second time over it.
Go to the Menu > Filter > Visual effect > Gaussien blur > Move the cursor to 25 pixels approx.
We will apply the final text over the glow we created.
8. Open the text dialog box again and chose the same text with the same settings. Do not close or exit the text box! Click on "Effect", and checkmark "Stroke", "Blur and Low" then choose the colour of your stroke. I had white. Click Ok when you're done.
9. Now just position your text over the glow and deselect! Tips
To increase the effect of the glow even more, accentuate the colours of the blurred letters before applying the final text. For this, you go to the Menu > Filter > Color > Colorize. BUT do not forget to deselect your text before applying the filter.
Do not choose fonts that are to thin!
You're done!!! Hope this was useful, I will post more tutorials when time allows. The blue letters glow was made with the "Artistic blur" filter
whereas the pink one was made with the "Gaussien Blur" filter, notice how the glow came out better!
Ways to Improve Faded Photographs tutorial 9
You can improve the quality of your photographs or images in Photofiltre when they are not too severely blurred. So, if you happen to take photographs which colours did not come out as intended, here is what you can do to improve them.
1. Open your photograph or image in Photofiltre. I had this one
2. Go to the menu and click on Auto Contrast, if you are satisfied with the result, keep the image as it is or if you find that the change is too drastic, you can fade it by going to the Menu > File >"Fade Auto Contrast" and while watching your picture, move the slider until you are satisfied with the result.
2. We can also revive the colours after.
Go to the Menu > Filer > Color > Revive Colors.
3. And again, you can go back to the Menu > File > "Fade Revive Color" and adjust the settings.
Tip
Some people like to sharpen their pictures to improve their appearance, for this you go to the Menu > Filter Sharpen > Sharpen. But be careful! Personally, I never use the "Sharpen filter" for it adds noise to the picture. If you decide to use it, use it with parsimony!
More examples: Before
After
After
